Jonathan Victory talks to Professor Stuart Sumida, who was at the Irish VFX + Animation Summit to give a workshop/masterclass on Animal Anatomy and Locomotion for Animators and VFX Artists.

Stuart Sumida is a Professor of Biology at California State University San Bernardino. He was named CSU System-wide Wang Professor of the Year in 2008, and Carnegie Institute of Washington California Professor of the Year in 2011. He is a vertebrate palaeontologist with over 60 peer-reviewed publications, and is the most sought-after animal anatomy consultant in the animation and visual effects industries, having worked on over 60 films, video games, and theme park rides. His film credits range from Lion King, and Tarzan, to How to Train Your Dragon. Recent work includes Life of Pi, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, and Guardians of the Galaxy, as well as the upcoming Zootopia with Disney Feature Animation, The Good Dinosaur for Pixar, Mrs. Peregrine’s School for Peculiar Children with Double Negative, and projects with DreamWorks, and MPC.